Vacation smiles...

Last week marked a brief moment. This moment should be written down in the history books so that the children of our future can take in how society of the past worked their asses of instead of sitting around eating hostess products filled with creams and jellies. I learned a long time ago (well, not that long ago really... I'm not that old-- bringing forth another fine point) that if you don't take a chance -- if you don't work diligently towards a goal -- if you don't struggle day-in and day-out to tackle that "dream" and run it headlong into a wall you will find yourself sitting in the same chair, with the same complaints, and the same dire sense of failure that you had ten years ago. So, with that long winded statement in mind, I have been busting my ass. I have been burning both ends of the candle... And I'll tell you, there is little candle left to burn. Now, with that shorter analogy , last week marked a much needed break in candle lighting. I took the first vacation I've had since October of 2005.
I didn't have plans. I didn't go to any wonderful city destination. I didn't have another job lined up that would require taking off some time at the "day job." I simply took the time to "decompress" and grow a beard.
Now, that doesn't mean that I didn't work on the "film stuff" this past week. As a matter of fact I spent a good four days working on the DVD portion of the film during my much needed vacation. In that stretch of time I edited and finished the MAKING OF documentary for DIVINE MANIPULATION OF THE THREADS. It ended up being somewhere around 31 minutes of interview cuts and bloopers. It's sure to get a laugh. We didn't do interviews with everyone. That was a flaw on my part because I was a little busy working on the logistics of making the film. I wanted the documentary to be great... show a little bit of the fun that comes along with making a NO-BUDGET movie with your friends. I think we accomplished it... but the documentary did end up taking a back seat to everything else in the production. We didn't get key interviews with key actors. Apparently, that happens when you don't have a budget or an additional hand in getting documentary footage. Much like any other project, I always wish that I had more.
Brad, Anthony, and I sat down on Wednesday evening to record what will eventually be the "commentary" track on the DVD. It's kind of funny... but it's pretty stupid too. I don't think that we really added anything to the understanding of cinema. We really just joked about our flaws and how "if you look close you can see the screw up right here." So, for all of our hardcore fans in China... learn English, learn English slang, and then laugh your ass off... but please don't pirate. We're not a corporation. We're trying to find a way to make a living in the business that hates outsiders. Share... but no pirating... or there is going to be more than a little kung-fu fighting.
Back to the point, I did take some time for myself this week. I caught up on a couple of movies: Inside Man (go see it) and Lucky Number Slevin (don't bother). Inside Man is what once made movies great... worth taking an afternoon off and going to the theater for. It used it's star power very effectively. The story was strong and the "heist" portion of the movie was so clever I was pissed off that I didn't think of it. Lucky Number Slevin tried to be too clever. The stylized dialogue didn't work. The only thing that saved the movie from being a complete waste of time was the ending. Had the entire film been as dark/clever as the last portion of the film, someone would have likened it to Pulp Fiction (which can be a good or bad thing). I watched a few at home as a refresher course: Lost in Translation, Smokey and the Bandit, Spartan, and even took the time to watch another local filmmaker's latest production; Shutter.
I would like to think that I used my time well... because I needed a little calm after the storm. Oh, and I turned 29 on April 16th. The change of age just slithered through without a sound or major mental issue. It's nothing more than another day that I got presents and a few free drinks. I did get a few cool presents and Christine did her best to make it special. So we're a little older... a little farther ahead on the grand scheme of the product... And a little more aware of our surroundings (sleep is a good thing)... oh, and we're back at work. There have been some updates on imdb.com for the film... but someone has gone in and submitted their own stuff for it before I could get to it. So I'm now playing clean up on the film information. Until next time...

Rounding the bend

Well, we finished up the grand premiere run of the film on Thursday, April 6th. It was a good time. I learned a few things about the film, about the people that came to see it, and I was taken aback by the massive strength and support of the individuals involved in this film. Many of them took it upon themselves to become our "street team" to put out flyers, posters, generate interest through word of mouth and short skirts. We may have made an entertaining film... but without the assistance of these fantastic people, I doubt that many people would have seen it.
I've heard fantastic stories of random people sharing their opinions, reviews, and "need to go see this movie" enthusiasm with others city wide. I think that we may have done something terribly right for a change.
The exhaustion is starting to take retreat... I'm getting a little more sleep... and there have been a few nights when I've been able to go home, cook a decent meal, and enjoy the simple comforts of sitting on my ass and watching "Lost." Currently we are undertaking the small project of editing the "joke documentary" that merely includes interviews and bloopers. It should be relatively short and sweet... and gives an inside look at how goofy we are on set. Because if you're going to make a feature length film with no budget... you should have at least have fun doing it. It looks like most of us did.
I share my birthday with the "Jesus party" known as Easter, this year. I'll be 29. I'll have you know that growing up sucks... I either have a pulled muscle in my back or I have a kidney stone... and I can't drink like I used to. Apparently you do have to take better care of yourself. I'll be on a much needed vacation following the birthday change-over. I don't have plans... maybe catch up on a few movies... have a couple of good meals... sleep a lot... and of course, finish up the details of the DVD for replication. The work never ends. Yeah, there will be another one in the works sometime soon.
Thank you once again to everyone who made our premiere showing great. Thanks for everyone that helped. Thanks for putting up with me. Thank you thank you thank you. I'll be in touch soon.

-B